Naveen the step-through 1972 Opaque Green Super Sport

[Rhacopilot]

(I'm sad the topic icon for :grin: is no longer the green version! Just saying)

Hi! My bike is named Naveen after Prince Naveen of Maldonia in the Disney movie "Princess and Frog" because, hey, I love frogs. I realize it's a "ladies" frame, but the name is stuck in my head.

I'm still having a roadblock to riding. Every time I think about going, I immediately think of how short a ride it will be because I expect my hands to go numb, and I'll be wobbly, and if there's a problem I can't squeeze the brake levers right....
I want to take my dogs. I know if they enjoy it, they will help me make a routine. Since the beagle's near-death and extended stint on an 8-hour schedule of antibiotics, they have a wonderful routine I love of waking me at dawn. They go outside quickly because they want breakfast! I know if they love riding, they will help me be good and badger me to go for rides.

So let's fix the hang-ups.
Life is too short to say no to my babies for such silly excuses.

Today I am going to go searching for the Mifflin. I saw the old Admiral in the junk pile earlier, but it's handlebars are swept back TOO far.
I need to see if the handlebars will go on Naveen. I have to able to ride with confidence and control of the bike before I can trust myself to add an unpredictable doggy to the equation!

Regular handlebars. That's the plan.

[Sleeper]

I need a "refresher". Is Naveen the bike that you were working on back when the former SBF was still active? IIRC, you had the handlebars turned upside down. Would the new handle bars be an "upgrade" from that configuration?

[Rhacopilot]

Yes!

Naveen is the one that grandad was helping me with, he gave me "Shedley Castle" and made a stand for my bike, and got the generator light set tested. I never got the bike reassembled, and after carting to he box and frame through several moves, I took it to a bike shop after surgery for them to put back together for me.

The handlebars were upside down briefly to give me the upright posture my doctor required after my neck surgery.
I honestly can't remember if I liked it much... Do you think I could turn them and just put hand brakes on them that way?

[Sleeper]

I can't say for sure whether or not the swaps you're suggesting will work. Handlebars have different diameters for different types of bikes and many times are not interchangeable. This goes for both stems and brake levers. If the new handlebar is a bit narrow for the stem, it's possible (to a certain degree) to use a shim to make for a tight fit. If the new handlebar diameter is too large, you would need a different stem. I would measure the center most portion of the handlebar that's on the bike currently to make sure that the handlebar you want will fit. You may need to use a caliper for the measurement as millimeters matter!

[JeffC]

Yes!

Naveen is the one that grandad was helping me with, he gave me "Shedley Castle" and made a stand for my bike, and got the generator light set tested. I never got the bike reassembled, and after carting to he box and frame through several moves, I took it to a bike shop after surgery for them to put back together for me.

The handlebars were upside down briefly to give me the upright posture my doctor required after my neck surgery.
I honestly can't remember if I liked it much... Do you think I could turn them and just put hand brakes on them that way?

I remember the bike as an Opaque Green Women's Super Sport. If they are the original handlebars they are the road style drop handlebars. They have an outside diameter of 23.8mm and use brake levers designed to be used for those handlebars.

If you want to use upright tourist handlebars like the Suburban, Hollywood, Collegiate etc... You will need tourist handlebars with an outside diameter of 22mm (the middle of the bars are one inch, the same as the drop bars), tourist brake levers designed for those bars, mountain bike style inner brake cables and grips for the handlebars. I have found the best way to make a conversion like that is to find a donor bike on craigslist and swap the parts over to your bike. I would talk to your bike shop and tell them what you want to do and they might be able to help you out and at least give you an idea on the cost and time it will take to do such work. 

[Sleeper]

Yes!

Naveen is the one that grandad was helping me with, he gave me "Shedley Castle" and made a stand for my bike, and got the generator light set tested. I never got the bike reassembled, and after carting to he box and frame through several moves, I took it to a bike shop after surgery for them to put back together for me.

The handlebars were upside down briefly to give me the upright posture my doctor required after my neck surgery.
I honestly can't remember if I liked it much... Do you think I could turn them and just put hand brakes on them that way?

I remember the bike as an Opaque Green Women's Super Sport. If they are the original handlebars they are the road style drop handlebars. They have an outside diameter of 23.8mm and use brake levers designed to be used for those handlebars.

If you want to use upright tourist handlebars like the Suburban, Hollywood, Collegiate etc... You will need tourist handlebars with an outside diameter of 22mm (the middle of the bars are one inch, the same as the drop bars), tourist brake levers designed for those bars, mountain bike style inner brake cables and grips for the handlebars. I have found the best way to make a conversion like that is to find a donor bike on craigslist and swap the parts over to your bike. I would talk to your bike shop and tell them what you want to do and they might be able to help you out and at least give you an idea on the cost and time it will take to do such work. 

Great info for Ms RhacoPilot and perhaps others too! I was hoping someone would come forth with those pesky details  .
I modded a '81 LeTour to give me more of an upright riding position by replacing the drop bars with a mountain bike bar and some mountain bike brake levers. I can't remember if I had to use a different stem but I think not. I believe that using handlebars like those on the Suburban, Hollywood & Collegiate (as suggested) would allow for a more upright position than my conversion did. I'm curious to see what she comes up with .

[JeffC]

Yes!

Naveen is the one that grandad was helping me with, he gave me "Shedley Castle" and made a stand for my bike, and got the generator light set tested. I never got the bike reassembled, and after carting to he box and frame through several moves, I took it to a bike shop after surgery for them to put back together for me.

The handlebars were upside down briefly to give me the upright posture my doctor required after my neck surgery.
I honestly can't remember if I liked it much... Do you think I could turn them and just put hand brakes on them that way?

I remember the bike as an Opaque Green Women's Super Sport. If they are the original handlebars they are the road style drop handlebars. They have an outside diameter of 23.8mm and use brake levers designed to be used for those handlebars.

If you want to use upright tourist handlebars like the Suburban, Hollywood, Collegiate etc... You will need tourist handlebars with an outside diameter of 22mm (the middle of the bars are one inch, the same as the drop bars), tourist brake levers designed for those bars, mountain bike style inner brake cables and grips for the handlebars. I have found the best way to make a conversion like that is to find a donor bike on craigslist and swap the parts over to your bike. I would talk to your bike shop and tell them what you want to do and they might be able to help you out and at least give you an idea on the cost and time it will take to do such work. 

Great info for Ms RhacoPilot and perhaps others too! I was hoping someone would come forth with those pesky details  .
I modded a '81 LeTour to give me more of an upright riding position by replacing the drop bars with a mountain bike bar and some mountain bike brake levers. I can't remember if I had to use a different stem but I think not. I believe that using handlebars like those on the Suburban, Hollywood & Collegiate (as suggested) would allow for a more upright position than my conversion did. I'm curious to see what she comes up with .

The Schwinn handlebars and stem sizes are pretty limited but it makes it easier to remember the measurements. Once you get into the 90's bikes then all bets are off with the 1 1/8 stems and the different size handlebar swells, and different head sets. One thing I do like about the later stems though is you don't have to remove the stem from the bike to change handlebars